Stud Marks: How Birmingham City legend Gil Merrick got his nicknames
BLUES and football lost a true great when Gil Merrick died.
The club’s record appearance holder and still the only person to manage Blues to a major trophy success, Merrick’s legacy will never be forgotten.
He was capped 23 times by England, and played in the 1954 World Cup finals.
But it was after being on the receiving end of the brilliant Hungary side in the run-up to the tournament that Merrick earned the nickname ‘Mister Thirteen’.
England were stunned 6-3 at Wembley and then 7-1 in Budapest.
Merrick also had two other nicknames, which were less well known. He was referred to as ‘The Clutch’ because of his determination to catch rather than punch the ball.
And he was also labelled ‘Eccles’. Why? When he was stationed at Oswestry in the Army Physical Training Corps, he would often eat ten Eccles cakes at a time!
This article is taken from Stud Marks, a sideways look at Midlands football which appears in the Birmingham Mail every Monday
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